Clockwise from left: Belle, Anne, Susan, and Cooper
The Rev. Susan Anderson-Smith, a native of Mississippi, came to Tucson in 2000 as an Associate Rector at St. Philip’s In The Hills Episcopal Church. Perceiving the needs of the community, and inspired both by her time at The Cathedral School in Washington, D.C. and by her knowledge of the Epiphany School in Dorchester, MA, she began to dream about opening a school on the pattern of Epiphany to serve Tucson children.
The Rev. Anne Sawyer, a native of Tucson whose family attended St. Philips when she was a child, met Rev. Susan through a mutually beloved family friend. Rev. Anne holds a Master’s in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago, and was studying at Harvard Divinity School when the seed of opening a school was planted.
Within the year, The Revs. Anne and Susan were awarded a grant for a feasibility study for a Tucson middle school modeled on Epiphany.
After 11 amazing years of running Imago Dei, The Rev. Anne was called to become Rector of historic St. Mark’s Church in the Bowery in lower Manhattan in the spring of 2017. In 2023, she was named interim dean and priest-in-charge at St. John’s Cathedral in Los Angeles.
Reverend Susan returned to Tucson to once again serve as Chaplain at Imago Dei in July 2021. The whole school community rejoiced to have her back, sharing a tearful goodbye when she left Tucson in June 2024 for her next incredible adventure and call to service.